6th Vermont Infantry - Wounded and POW

Item LTR-127

Description

4 pages in period ink on Patriotic Stationery.

Headquarters Vermont Regiment
Co B, 6th Regiment
Camp Griffin
Jan 9th, 1862

Dear Friends,

I now seat myself to write a few lines to you to let you know that I am still in the land of the living. I am in good health and enjoying myself very well. We have some good times out here. We are called out sometimes to go and fight but when we get out we have to stand around all day for a guard for the foraging teams and get them loaded and then turn around and come back to our camp again and perhaps we can get one night’s rest and then we must go on drill. We have to drill four hours in a day. It is fall in and break ranks, march and fall in or out all of the time. It is company drill or squad drill in the forenoon for two hours. Battalion drill is in the afternoon. We have a pretty good place to drill. It is level as a barn floor. I have not seen a rebel yet and do not much expect to yet for a while, if ever I do. I should like to see a few for the grins of it, so to see how they look. We went out on a foraging expedition the other day about 8 or 9 miles and did not see any. But one company went out about six miles further than we did and they saw some of the darned whelps and when the rebels saw them they turned around and fled all but two horsemen. Eighteen of our men were ordered to go back to our camp. We have not been in a fight yet and I do not see much sign of it yet. We are about 12 miles from Washington and about 4 miles from Chain Bridge on an up and down plain where we can look off about as far as we can in Williamstown. The stones are about three feet deep and as thick as you ever saw them in Vermont. There is three to one on your farm. Tell Orin to write to me and let me know how he is getting along and write yourself to me and tell all of the folks to write to me. Tell Elisa to write. Tell Oraette that I got her letter and was glad to hear from her and the rest of the folks. I should like to hear from you all. Tell your mother I should like to have a good chat with her. Give my best respects to all your folks and to all inquiring friends. If Elisa is there give my best respects to her. Please write to me as soon as you get this. From your friend,

Henry H. Marsh

Direct to Washington D.C.
Co B, 6th Regiment
Vermont Volunteers

From: Henry H. Marsh
To: Nash Semonds